The Affair
by livfre
Summary: Bella is married, but feels a strange connection to her boss, CEO Jacob Black. She feels conflicted, wanting to stay true to her marriage. Could it be love? Will she give it a chance?


Bella felt a blush come to her cheeks as she felt Jacob's eyes on her. He was the opposite of most men in his position- with CEOs, the requirement seemed to be fat, balding, middle aged and lecherous men. In contrast, Jacob was only 27 years old, was kind-hearted and had no fat anywhere on his muscular body.

He had a brilliantly sharp mind, of course. That was what had elevated him from part time mechanic in a small reservation in Washington to CEO and Editor-in-Chief of NewsInk in just seven years. A small newspaper article he had written to gain publicity for his auto shop had been noticed by a journalist who knew talent when she saw it. NewsInk's generous referral bonus meant that in no time at all she had paid Jacob's auto shop a visit.

From there his career had skyrocketed. His genuinely warm, open personality made interviewees open up around him, and his interviews became well known as some of the best.

His unconventional upbringing had prepared him perfectly to become a successful man. Spending his teenage years caring for a disabled father had granted him the emotional maturity of someone ten years older, and being forced to live on just government disability payments after the accident that had killed his mother and crippled his father had given him money skills.

Now he was CEO of an international, multi-million dollar company. Many of the office girls fawned over him. Single for over two years, he was the ultimate eligible bachelor. There were occasional rumours in the tabloids about him being romantically linked to various starlets, but nothing substantial.

Bella knew her boss harboured a crush on her. From the moment their eyes had met, on her first day at the office two years ago, there had been a connection. She still remembered the day perfectly. Their eyes had met from across the room, and her heart had stopped for a moment. She felt an indescribable feeling- an odd combination of lust, comfort and love. He was staring at her with an equally intense look in his eyes. He had come over and introduced himself, asking if she had any questions about the company or if she needed help settling in. She was far too excited and nervous to do anything more than respond with monosyllabic words. Ever since she was little, Bella had wanted to write. This was her big break- she was a NewsInk employee! It was tangible evidence that her writing had some talent. It was a dream come true for her! This in combination with the strange connection she felt with Jacob and him introducing himself as the CEO- her boss, the one with her future in his hands, had rendered her incapable of speech.

He had told her he was about to go to Starbucks and grab a coffee, and asked if she wanted anything. She had nodded her head with a small smile, and asked for a coffee with no milk, lots of sugar. He had smiled at her and commented on her lack of Starbucks terminology. It was only later, when she was replaying the scene in her mind, that it occurred to her how strange it was for him to be getting his own coffee.

A week later, he had asked her on a date. Looking shy and very vulnerable, he gave her a coffee (no milk, lots of sugar) and asked her. It was with a heavy heart she turned him down, saying she was married. It still made her uneasy thinking about the utter sadness and despair in his eyes she had seen in his eyes that day.

Jacob had kept his distance since then, still being friendly to her but never overstepping the boundaries. Even though Bella would sometimes wish that he would.

She jerked herself out of her thoughts. How could she think that! And on her husband's birthday, no less! Feeling guilty, she gathered her things. She decided to take the afternoon off work, and go home and surprise Edward with a cake. Edward had aspirations to become a famous guitarist, and as such did not have a day job. Occasionally he and his band would play gigs at clubs, but during the day he was always home working on his music.

Bella selected an ice cream cake from her favourite cake shop, Boulangerie. It was run by an old married couple who made the cakes themselves. Bella always loved talking to the wife, Emma. She was hilarious. And whenever she saw Emma and James holding hands, she felt a longing deep inside her to have that sort of relationship with somebody. To have spent her life with one person, in a relationship with love and respect. She hoped that when they were old, her and Edward would be as inseperable as Emma and James.

Bella made it home with the cake, and quietly opened the door. She opened her mouth to call out to Edward and let him know that she was home, when she noticed something out of place. There was a lone red high heel, in the middle of her living room rug. She glanced around, and that's when she noticed the panties. They were very sheer, very lacy and very not Bella's.

Her heart began to start pounding as she crept towards her bedroom door. It opened with a small creak, but the occupants of the room were far too distracted to notice. Edward was naked on top of a tanned woman with long blonde hair, thrusting into her at a breakneck pace. Bella let out a shocked groan as her world came tumbling down around her.

Edward paused, turning around, and that's when he saw her. "Oh, fuck," he moaned, running his fingers through his hair. She had always loved it when he did that, but now it brought her nothing but disgust. "Bella, baby, listen. I love you. She means nothing to me," he said, gesturing at his indignant bed partner. "I'm so sorry you had to see this. But I really had no choice in the matter. She does things that you refuse to do. Like anal. I love you, but I have needs too, baby."

Bella stormed out of the room, feeling the bile rising in her throat. She grabbed his guitar, storming over to the floor next to the front door, where she had placed the cake. With a yell, she brought it down on the cake. The cake was hard, and the guitar handle ended up splintering. Bella left the house, running down the street until she reached a small park. She hid behind the bushes, so that if Edward tried to follow he wouldn't be able to find her, before sinking down to the ground, crying.

Bella cried until she had no tears left, and then just began sobbing. She felt so alone. She needed a friend. Somebody to comfort her. She pulled out her phone, not hesitating. She knew who she needed to call.

Jake.

Authors note: So... this is the first piece of writing I've done in three years. I'm a little rusty! I wasn't too pleased with how this turned out, but welcome any reviews (even if they're not particularly flattering).


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